fiat

[fee-aht, -at, fahy-uht, -at]

noun

1. an authoritative decree, sanction, or order.

   a royal fiat.

   Synonyms: ukase, diktat, mandate, ruling, directive, authorization

2. a fixed form of words containing the word fiat, by which a person in authority gives sanction, or authorization.

3. an arbitrary decree or pronouncement, especially by a person or group of persons having absolute authority to enforce it.

   The king ruled by fiat.

fiat

/ ˈfaɪət, -æt /

noun

1. official sanction; authoritative permission

2. an arbitrary order or decree

3. literary,  any command, decision, or act of will that brings something about

Word History and Origins

Origin of fiat¹

First recorded in 1625–35; from Latin: “let it be done,” 3rd-person singular present subjunctive of fierī “to become”

Word History and Origins

Origin of fiat¹

C17: from Latin, literally: let it be done, from fierī to become

Example Sentences

By surging past $4,000 for the first time ever this week, gold is “reinforcing its role as a hedge against accelerating fiat destruction and fiscal instability,” he told MarketWatch.

Read more on MarketWatch

Still, as Robin Brooks of the Brookings Institution noted, the dollar has been stable since August, suggesting gold’s recent rally is about eroding faith in all fiat currencies.

Read more on Wall Street Journal

Investors might not trust the stewards of fiat currencies around the world, but they are, for the moment at least, still happy to follow the leaders of the world’s biggest AI companies.

Read more on Barron's

He practically governs by fiat on Truth Social as if he were a medieval lord, while his minions relentlessly disperse their anger and vitriol across cyberspace.

Read more on Salon

“Yet, by executive fiat, the President ordered the Secretary of Education to ‘take all necessary steps to facilitate the closure of the Department’ ...

Read more on Los Angeles Times